STOCKACH, Germany — Kicherer, the longtime Mercedes-Benz tuner, has turned out another rendition of the gullwing SLS AMG. Called Supersport Black Edition, the car gets a more powerful engine and a striking matte black exterior treatment.

Kicherer has recalibrated the engine management system on the AMG-tuned 6.2-liter V8 and has fitted a stainless-steel sport exhaust system. Output climbs from 563 to 620 horsepower.

The foil-wrapped matte exterior covers additional aero body bits, including a front spoiler lip and revised rear diffuser.

Kicherer also has added 20-inch RS-1 wheels, painted black with silver accents and shod with low-profile performance rubber. An adjustable sport suspension includes a lift feature.

Ford Focus RS owners can now turn up the power on their ‘regular’ 224kW superhatch with an extra 33kW and 20Nm of torque – matching the performance of the Focus RS500.

The MP350 RS kit brings the total power output of the Ford Focus RS to 257kW and 460Nm, and is priced at £1,995 or just over A$3,310.

Developed by Ford Team RS in partnership with Mountune Performance (MP), the package offers similar engine upgrades to the RS500 but misses out on other extras such as the matt black wrap finish.

The MP350 RS upgrade includes a larger intercooler and air filter box, larger diameter exhaust downpipe and a higher-capacity fuel pump, along with uprated software calibration, all the while keeping the factory warranty intact.

Italy’s Fiat is reported to be building a four-door version of the Fiat 500 small car for North America and Europe. The Fiat 500 which is currently only available as a two-door will be available in a four-door variant in Europe by the end of 2011.

Little else is known about the project expect that the four-door model of the Fiat 500 is code-named L0. It’s likely to be in the small minivan category in Europe given it has a hatch in the rear and a high roof.

Reports say the Fiat 500 four-door will be built at the manufacturer’s Mirafiori plant in Turin and be based on a longer and wider platform than the two-door model.

March saw Fiat sell 32 Fiat 500s in Australia, making a total of 88 sold from beginning of the year til end of March.

CarAdvice has contacted Fiat Australia regarding the 500 four-door variant and its Australian availability in the future. Article will be updated once we hear back.

Held at Modena’s Ducal Palace, now a military academy, the grand gala involved the participation of Ferrari factory test drivers and military cadets before a crowd of Ferrari’s most elite 500 customers.

The exclusive limited edition special is the brand’s fastest ever road car, and although inspired by the production version of the Ferrari 599, is in fact based upon the 599XX – Ferrari’s advanced experimental track car.

A strictly limited run of just 599 examples of the Ferrari 599 GTO will be produced, the car already proving quicker than both the Ferrari Enzo and Ferrari 430 Scuderia, lapping Ferrari’s Fiorano test circuit in just one minute and 24 seconds.

The Ferrari 599 GTO is powered by a 6.0-litre V12 engine developing 500kW at 8250rpm and peak torque of 620Nm at 6500rpm. It is mated exclusively to an F1-style six-speed transmission resulting in a power-to-weight ratio of just 2.23 kg/hp.

Using F1-inspired chassis design principles, the car’s dry weight is just 1495kg. Top speed is rated at 335km/h with the sprint to 100km/h managed in just 3.35 seconds.

Sadly, for customers wishing to express an interest in the Ferrari 599 GTO at its first public appearance, scheduled for the Beijing Motor Show next week, Ferrari tells us that every last one of the exclusive models has now been sold.

The car’s sheetmetal is also more deeply sculpted, with lines similar to those seen on the new Hyundai ix35.

At this point, little more is known about the next-generation Hyundai Accent, though we can expect a mix of petrol and diesel powerplants. A Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) hybrid variant, similar to the Kia Forte LP1 Hybrid (Kia Cerato LPI Hybrid in some markets), is also a strong possibility.

(With Autonews & Auto Ifeng)

With Adrian Fernandez behind the wheel, the 007 car was the quickest in the first practice session with a time of 1m13.213, some 0.072 seconds ahead of the second placed LMP1 (Le Mans Prototype 1) car.

Normally conditioned for long distance endurance races, this 100-minute dash was always going to be a tough call for the Aston Martin. That said the car ran with maximum downforce, allowing it to better tackle the hairpin like bends of the tree lined circuit with sufficient grip from the Michelin tyres.

But two-safety car periods meant that the initial lead established by driver Harold Primat, was severely eroded with the number 37 car grabbing the lead from the Aston Martin.

If that wasn’t disappointing, another car made contact with Primat, sending him into a tyre barrier, causing rear end damage and back to third position.

The offending car was held for a stop/go penalty, which allowed the 007 car to regain second position.

Another pit stop and driver change was made under yet another yellow flag, which meant that Adrian Fernandez was behind the safety car for 13 minutes before racing resumed.

With only 4 minutes remaining in the race, Fernandez made a desperate run and took the lead in the final lap, only to concede the hard fought gain when he ran slightly wide through turn five and had to settle for second place across the finish line. Nonetheless, it was an outstanding result for the team, and its third consecutive podium finish in the hotly contested Le Mans Series.

Clearly disappointed, team principle George Howard-Chappell said: “We’re very disappointed to have lost first place so close to the end. It was however a very exciting race and the team had as lot to deal with throughout. Everyone did a great job, but it is a real shame not to win today.”

The cars will be driven by a mix of experienced racers and upcoming young drivers including Jimmy Johansson (S), Florian Gruber (D), Nicki Thim (DK) and touring car ace Peter Terting (D) who steered a pioneering gas-powered Scirocco GT24-CNG to victory in the alternative powertrains category last year.

The second car comprises experienced endurance racers from a variety of international disciplines. Nasser Al-Attiyah (Q), who finished second in Volkswagen’s 1-2-3 at this year’s Dakar Rally, is joined by former DTM driver Vanina Ickx (B), endurance racing legend Dieter Depping (D) and two-time winner of the Nürburgring 24-hour, Klaus Niedzwiedz (D).

Dr Ulrich Hackenberg, Member of the Management Board for Technical Development and Prof Dr Stefan Gies, Head of Chassis Development for Volkswagen are paired with journalists Bernd Ostmann (D) and Peter Wyss (CH) in the third Scirocco.

The third vehicle is fitted with an innovative active electro-hydraulic differential in place of the conventional system, which is fitted to the other two cars. The electronically controlled system will undergo the ultimate test of endurance, and is designed to combine the functionality of the conventional system with improved handling characteristics and a reduction in understeer.

Further developments of the 2009-spec cars include a larger braking system to reduce maintenance intervals during the gruelling 24-hours, and the integration of additional lights in the front bumper to improve nighttime visibility.

Early testing has seen impressive lap times on the Nordschleife circuit with Nicki Thim posting a lap record for a front-wheel drive vehicle with a time of 8m 47.337s during the latest round of the preparation races.

As final preparations are made for this year’s event, Volkswagen Motorsport will continue to extensively test the three Scirocco GT24-CNG racers, including contesting one final Endurance Championship race on the Nürburgring at the end of this month.

The Nürburgring 24-hour endurance race will take place from May 12 to 16.

Ralliart Inc., a wholly owned Japanese subsidiary of Mitsubishi Motors Corp., informed global distributors last week that it would cease business operations March 31.

In the United States and Europe, Mitsubishi markets a Ralliart sports version of its Lancer, which has become a sporty halo car for the brand. That racing image has in turn influenced styling of other Mitsubishi vehicles, such as the Outlander crossover.

But Mitsubishi does not use Ralliart parts in the United States or distribute them to U.S. retailers.

“We still own the Ralliart name, and we still intend to brand our cars with it,” Maurice Durand, a spokesman for Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc., said.

Durand said the industry is still likely to see Ralliart jackets, caps and other merchandise branding in the future.

“The biggest change for us is that we won’t have to pay royalties to use the name anymore,” he said. Ralliart’s failure is a symptom of the Japanese tuner market, which has been in decline for several years. The company’s racing suspension parts and turbocharging kits proved to be too expensive when exported to markets such as the United States. Unfavorable exchange rates contributed to the parts’ competitive problems.

In a letter to Ralliart customers around the world that was posted on the company’s Web site, President Masao Taguchi said business conditions “surrounding our company radically became worse” after the economic crash of 2008.

sources from autonews com

Using federal racketeering laws to amend the consumer class-action complaints, which have grown in number to more than 80 suits in at least 40 states, exposes Toyota to much greater potential liability.

Under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act, a commercial enterprise can be found liable for triple the damages for any harm caused by its fraudulent activities.

As a result, litigation that originally stood to reap more than $2 billion in damages for Toyota owners could end up costing the cash-rich Japanese automaker in excess of $10 billion, said Tim Howard, lead counsel for a team of law firms handling about half the cases.

Each of the revised lawsuits is “a much more robust and thorough complaint than the first rounds because of how the evidence has evolved since then,” Howard said.

A Toyota spokesman could not be immediately reached for comment on Wednesday. The automaker has declined to comment on pending litigation to date.

New evidence

The updated complaints draw on numerous documents and congressional testimony by Toyota executives to make the case that the company was aware of unintended acceleration problems in its vehicles for several years, even as it continued to promote defective cars as safe and reliable.

One suit in Florida cites a technical service bulletin it says the automaker issued in August 2002 “concerning an engine surge or acceleration problem with the new 2002 Camry, with the solution to recalibrate the Engine Control Module.”

Toyota has insisted that electronics have nothing to do with sudden, unintended acceleration in its vehicles, pointing instead to entrapment of the gas pedal by ill-fitting floor mats or sticky gas pedals themselves.

Those two problems were singled out for correction in recalls of more than 8 million Toyota vehicles to date, the largest such action ever taken by the automaker.

The consumer lawsuits assert that Toyota’s alleged concealment of defects in its vehicles while advertising them as safe constitutes criminal fraud and thus falls under the definition of “racketeering activity.”

Updated complaints

Howard said his consortium of law firms had updated existing consumer cases in eight states as of Tuesday, and filings were planned in at last 12 more by week’s end.

All those and others around the country are to be consolidated into a single class action in the next couple of months, following a hearing before a panel of judges set for next Thursday in U.S. District Court in San Diego.

Litigation against Toyota has mounted quickly in the weeks since the recalls began for a problem linked to more than 50 crash deaths in Toyota and Lexus vehicles under investigation over the past decade.

Lawsuits related to injuries and deaths are the most obvious cases being brought against Toyota, and a class-action suit was filed in Los Angeles last month on behalf of U.S. shareholders accusing Toyota of misleading investors.

The consumer class actions are based on the premise that the resale value of Toyotas has dropped substantially as a result of the company’s safety crisis.

Major automobile valuation services have downgraded the resale value of Toyotas, Howard said.

Toyota has long boasted one of the industry’s highest resale values for its vehicles, one of the major factors in its success in the U.S. market.

source from europe autonews com

The Civic sedan was judged a four-star performer when it was tested by ANCAP after the current model was introduced in 2006. Several rivals such as the Ford Focus, Mazda3, Mitsubishi Lancer, Subaru Impreza, VW Golf and Holden Cruze have all subsequently scored five stars, although not all of them have full curtain airbags.

It is the second safety upgrade for the Honda small car, which gained ESC – or Vehicle Stability Assist, as Honda calls it – in February 2009.

Other minor upgrades for 2010 include two new colours – Dyno Blue and Habenera Red. The latter was introduced on the City.

As well, the Civic VTi-L sedan gets a new 10-spoke alloy wheel design.

Prices remain unchanged for the Civic sedan range, which is imported duty free from Thailand under the free-trade agreement and therefore not affected by the January 1 import tariff reduction.

The 1.8-litre Civic VTi manual is $22,990 (plus statutory and government charges), with metallic paint $475 extra and a $2300 premium for the five-speed automatic transmission.

KEY FEATURES:
CIVIC VTi

1. 1.8L SOHC i-VTEC engine
2. Combined fuel consumption 6.9L/100kms
3. 164g/km CO2 (manual only)
4. 5-speed manual or an optional 5-speed automatic transmission with Grade Logic Control
5. Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA)
6. Front, side and curtain airbags
7. Front active head restraints
8. ABS with EBD and Brake Assist
9. Cruise control
10. Air conditioning
11. Keyless entry
12. Remote boot release
13. Single CD tuner with MP3 compatibility and auxiliary jack
14. Tilt and telescopic steering wheel adjustment

CIVIC VTi-L
The same features as the VTi including:

1. Climate control air conditioning
2. New ten-spoke 16 inch alloy wheels
3. In-dash 6-stack CD with MP3 compatibility and auxiliary jack
4. Steering wheel mounted audio controls
5. Security alarm
6. 60/40 split fold rear seat

CIVIC SPORT
The same features as the VTi-L including:

1. 2.0L DOHC i-VTEC engine
2. Combined fuel consumption 8.3L/100kms
3. 197g/km CO2 (manual only)
4. Electric sunroof
5. 17 inch alloy wheels with a full size spare
6. Electric Power Steering (EPS)
7. Fog lights
8. Indicators in mirrors
9. Black leather interior
10. Leather wrapped steering wheel
11. Automatic transmission with steering wheel mounted paddle shifts
12. Exhaust pipe finisher

CIVIC HYBRID
Some features of the Civic Hybrid include:

1. 1.3L SOHC i-VTEC engine with Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) system
2. Combined fuel consumption 4.6L/100kms
3. 109g/km CO2
4. CVT transmission with Grade Logic Control
5. Fuel consumption display
6. Front, side and curtain airbags
7. Space-saver spare wheel
8. Electric Power Steering (EPS)
9. Front and rear spoiler
10. Two speed and intermittent wipers
11. Fog lights
12. Micro roof antenna
13. Rear seat armrest
14. Leather wrapped steering wheel
15. Indicators in mirrors
16. Exhaust pipe finisher
17. Beige cloth trim